Month: May 2023

Elena Rybakina, Kazakhstan’s top tennis player, made it to the Forbes’s 30 Under 30 Asia list, cementing her position as one of the most outstanding young athletes in the Asia-Pacific region. The tennis star rose to the 4^th place in the world’s tennis rankings after winning the Italian Open Tournament in Rome on May 20.

The list features 300 young entrepreneurs, leaders and trailblazers across the region, all under the age of 30, who are effecting positive change and driving innovation amid global economic uncertainty and a challenging environment.

Rybakina was one of the 30 notable honorees selected for the Entertainment & Sports category, Forbes reported in a statement. The list features a total of 10 categories, each represented by 30 honorees. More than 4,000 candidates were evaluated by the Forbes Asia team and a panel of expert judges on a variety of factors, including funding and/or revenue, social impact, inventiveness, and potential.

Rybakina became the first Kazakhstani player to win a major tennis title when she secured victory at the Wimbledon tournament in July 2022. On Saturday she has won her second WTA 1000 title at the 2023 Italian Open in Rome after defeating Angelina Kalinina in the final match. In March this year, she has won her first WTA 1000 title at the Indian Wells tournament where she has sealed victory in the final match over then world’s No. 2 Arina Sabalenka of Belarus.

In the beginning of this year, the 23-year-old tennis star donated part of her income from the matches to junior tennis players and to dog-rescue program in Kazakhstan. 

Kazakhstan Tennis Federation

SOURCE: https://www.forbes.com/profile/elena-rybakina/?list=30under30-asia-entertainment-sports/&sh=52bca9f59082

ASTANA, Kazakhstan, May 15, 2023 /PRNewswire/ — For the first time in the country’s history, the Kazakhstan Junior Boys and Girls Tennis Teams made it to the 16 and under World Championship Finals. The finals will be held in the Autumn in Cordoba, Spain, where the girls will compete in the Junior Billie Jean King Cup and the boys in the Junior Davis Cup.

The Asia Oceania Qualifying events were held in Kazakhstan for the first time in the Beeline Tennis Center in Shymkent. The boys and girls teams performed exceptionally against some very strong tennis nations. The girls team first beat Chinese Taipei in the quarter finals and followed this with a milestone win against Australia, five-time Junior Billie Jean King champions. The team lost only to Japan 2-1 in a hard-fought final match decided by the doubles. The Kazakh boys team fought their way through a tough group beating Uzbekistan, Chinese Taipei, and New Zealand to qualify for the quarter finals where they beat six-time champions, Australia, 2-0 to qualify for the World Finals.

Bulat Utemuratov, President of the Kazakhstan Tennis Federation, congratulated the teams:

“Congratulations to our boys and girls and to the captains for making it to the World finals of these flagship ITF junior team events for the first time. This is an incredible achievement, reflecting on all of the hard work of our young players and their coaches and the KTF player development team”. Bulat Utemuratov also noted; “This success of the junior national teams, shows how much the level of tennis has improved and provides the motivation for KTF to continue investing in the development of tennis in Kazakhstan. It inspires our younger players to keep practicing and striving for international success”.

The up-and-coming stars on Kazakhstan’s girls junior team were Ariana Gogulina, Polina Sleptsova, and Anastasia Krymkova. The boys team included Amir Omarkhanov, Zangar Nurlanuly, and Damir Zhalgasbay. The captains of the teams were Yaroslava Shvedova, former Grand Slam Champion, and top coach Sergey Kvak. The National Teams to participate in the World Championship Finals will be announced by KTF in September.  

The Junior Billie Jean King Cup and the Junior Davis Cup, organized annually by the International Tennis Federation, are the most important international team competitions for tennis players aged 16 and under.

SOURCE: https://www.prnewswire.co.uk/news-releases/kazakstan-tennis-federation-kazakhstan-junior-boys-and-girls-teams-reach-under-16-world-championship-finals-301824721.html

The Bulat Utemuratov Foundation celebrated Autism Awareness Month in Kazakhstan with an innovative hybrid communication campaign.

May 5, 2023 – The Bulat Utemuratov Foundation celebrated global Autism Awareness Month in Kazakhstan with an innovative hybrid communication campaign and an inspiring level of engagement. From digital street boards to photo exhibitions in public spaces and other original events, the Foundation contributed to the global effort to raise autism awareness.

“In 2022, there were 12,087 children diagnosed with autism spectrum disorder in Kazakhstan. Like people without a diagnosis, people with ASD have strengths, weaknesses, and unique talents. Our mission is to help them cultivate and manage those qualities so that they can actively participate in society and lead fulfilling lives,” said Dr. Almaz Sharman, Chairman of the Board of Trustees at the Bulat Utemuratov Foundation.

The Foundation kicked off its autism awareness campaign by inaugurating its 12th and largest autism center in Astana, which will have the capacity to host 900 children per year. The Asyl Miras Autism Centers provide early intervention programs for children with autism up to 18 years of age. Over 15,000 children have received help as part of the program since 2015.

Additionally, the Bulat Utemuratov Foundation organized a photo exhibition in a mall in Almaty, Kazakhstan’s largest city, offering visitors a closer look at the lives of children with ASD. The Foundation also teamed up with the urban innovation company Citix to set up smartboards in Almaty and Astana streets that provide information on autism symptoms, and advice for parents. 

Online, the Foundation ran a series of interviews with autism experts that were published on social media, debunking myths about autism and sharing ways in which society can become more inclusive.

With the aim of raising awareness about autism and promoting an inclusive culture, the Foundation hosts the annual “Autism. The World of Opportunities” international conference in Almaty. In 2022, world-renowned experts like Connie Kasari and Stephen Shore took part in the conference. In April 2023, the Foundation shared its experience in implementing evidence-based practices in autism centers in Kazakhstan at the International Conference for Autism and Neurodevelopmental Disorders (ICAN) in Dubai. To advance global knowledge about autism, the Foundation also supported this year’s Annual Meeting of INSAR (International Society for Autism Research) in Stockholm.

SOURCE: https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/kazakhstan-celebrates-global-autism-awareness-month—bulat-utemuratov-foundation-301817180.html